hulterstrum



y 1, 1956 H. D. HULTERSTRUM HINGE CONSTRUCTION FOR BOXES Filed Feb. 23, 1954 INVENTOR HAROLD D.HULTERSTRUM ATTORNEYS United States Patent 2,743,859 I HINGE CONSTRUCTION FOR BOXES Harold D. Hulterstrum, Baraboo, Wis.,- assignor to Flambeau Plastics Corporation, Baraboo, Wis., a corporation Application February 23, 1954, Serial No. 411,643

2 Claims. (Cl. 220-31) This invention appertains to boxes and the like having a hinged cover and more particularly to a novel hinge construction for containers.

One of the primary objects of this invention is to provide novel means for hingedly uniting a cover witha box body, whereby these parts can be readily assembled without the use of extraneous hinge pins, fastening elements and the like.

Another salient object of my invention is to provide a box embodying a body and a cover having molded thereon companion hinge parts with means whereby these hinge parts can be quickly inter-connected without breakage, by mere flexure of a wall of the body or cover, as the case may be, the construction being such as to permit a deep engagement of the molded hinge pins in their bearing seats or hinge barrels, whereby a durable but inexpensive hinge will be had.

A further object of my invention is the provision of a box including a body preferably formed from plastic having formed on one wall thereof adjacent to its opposite ends, hinge pins extending in the same direction and a cover having formed thereon bearing seats or barrels ex- 2,743,839 Patented May 1, 1956 Ice Figure 3 is a view similar to Figure l, but showing the wallet the box carrying the hinge parts in flexed condition to displace the lugs out of longitudinal alignment to permit shifting of the body and cover longitudinally relative to one another.

'iReferring to the drawing in detail, wherein similar reference. characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, the letter B generally indicates a box or container embodying the novel hinge construction H. Actually,'the box B can take any desired shape or form as long as the same includes a body 5 and a hinged cover 6. In the present showing, the box Bhasbeen formed as a sewing box and hence the body 5 hasformed therein partitions 7 of a particular shape and arrangement v(which forms no part of this present invention),-for receiving spools of thread, needles, etc. Thebox includes front and rear longitudinally extending walls 8..and 9 .and tranverse connecting end walls 10.

The entirebody is preferably molded from plasticor some. other similar material having resilient or flexible proper ties." The cover 6 is preferably formed from the same tending in the same direction but in an opposite direction to the pins, with means carried by the walls of the body and cover between the hinge parts for abutting relation, whereby to prevent lateral shifting of the cover and the body relative to one another when assembled, flexure of the wall of the body or cover serving to displace the means out of longitudinal alignment, whereby shifting of the cover and body relative to one another can be effected to permit disconnection or inter-connection as the case may be of the hinge parts.

A further important object of my invention is the provision of lugs formed in the nature of dummy hinge parts carried by the walls of a box body and cover and between companion hinge members formed on the opposite ends of the walls of the cover or body, the lugs being adapted to abut when the hinge parts are inter-connected, all of the parts being so-arranged that the lugs can be moved out of abutting relation by the flexing of the wall of the body so that the cover can be shifted relative to the body to permit the quick connection or disconnection of the hinge parts, the shifting of the cover relative to the body allowing the formation of hinge pins of any length desired to form a rugged structure.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in the novel construction, arrangement and formation of parts, as will be hereinafter more specifically described and claimed, and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which drawing:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a box embodying the features of my invention, the cover of the box being shown open and parts of the box being shown broken away and in section to illustrate the novel hinge arrangement;

Figure 2 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 22 of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows, and

have formed thereon pointed hinge pins or pintles 16 The barrels 15 and the pins 16 are in longitudinal alignment and the pins 16 extend in the same direction from their barrels.

Formed on the outer edge of the rear wall 12 of the,

cover 6 adjacent to its opposite ends are solid hinge barrels 17 having formed therein bearing seats 18 and these bearing seats are in longitudinal alignment and extend in the same direction but in the opposite direction to the pins 16. Consequently, the pins are freely movable into and out of their bearing seats 18 by the shifting of the cover or body of the box longitudinally relative to one another.

When the hinge parts 15 and 17 are inter-connected and to prevent lateral or longitudinal shifting movement of the cover and body relative to one another, I provide lugs 19 and 20 formed respectively on the upper edge of the rear Wall 9 of the body 5 and on the outer edge of the wall 12 of the cover 6. These lugs 19 and 20 are in longitudinal alignment with their respective hinge parts and haveflat inner faces 21 which normally abut. These lugs 19 and 20 are shaped to simulate hinge barrels to enhance the appearance of the box and are in effect, dummy hinge parts.

Due to the flexibility or resiliency of the wall 9 this wall can be freely flexed inward, and it is to be noted that the lugs 19 and 20 are located at the transverse center of the box and between the hinges of the box. By flexing the wall 9 inwardly as best shown in Figure 3, the lug 19 can be moved out of longitudinal alignment with the lug 20 and consequently, the cover can be shifted longitudinally to disconnect the hinge parts 15 and 17. view of the fact that there is no limit to the amout of longitudinal movement of the cover relative to the body when the lug 19 is out of longitudinal alignment with the lug 20, the bearing seats 18 can be of any desired depth and the pins 16 can be made of any desired length. Thus, a substantial and rugged hinge construction can be had.

Obviously, the cover can be readily and quickly assembled on the body of the box by simply flexing the wall 9 as shown in Figure 3 and shifting the cover to place the hinge pins 16 in the bearing recesses 18.

7 The front wall 8 of the body can be provided with a latch 22 which can be readily sprung in a keeper miiformed in the front wall 13 of the cover.

7 Changes in details may be made without departing the spirit or the scope of this invention, but what as new is:

- Lil. box or like container having a body including mlwflland'a cover for the body, mating hinge barrels carried by the rear wall and the cover adjacent to their opposite ends, said hinge barrels including mating hinge hinge seats so constructed and arranged that ,pinaare received in said seats upon the lateral movement of the cover relative to the wall in one direction pins are moved out of engagement with said seats 2. In a box or like container having a body including a flexible rear Wall and a cover for the body, mating hinge barrels carried by the rear wall and the cover adjacent to their opposite ends, the hinge barrels on the wall carrying hinge pins extending in the same direction, the hinge barrels on the cover being formed as hinge seats extending in the same direction but on opposite faces to the hinge pins on the wall whereby the cover and said body are freely shiftable laterally relative to one another, said cover and said wall each being provided with a stop lugintermediate its respective ends, said stop lugs being so constructed and arranged as to be in abutting relation and in longitudinal alignment with one another and with the mating hinge barrels to normally prevent the lateral shifting of said cover and wall relative to one another, the stop lug carried by the wall being movable out of longitudinal alignment with the stop lug on the cover when said wall is flexed inwardly whereby the cover and the wall may be shifted laterally relative to one another.

References Cited in the file of this patent FOREIGN PATENTS 297,181 Great Britain Sept. 20, 1928 

